If you've been following my blog, you'll know that I've been particularly open about the highs and lows of training for a fall half marathon, following my surgery in June, and I was having a difficult time with falling back in love with running. Then, a few weeks ago, I had a string of good runs and things seemed like they were on the up and up.
I was however still debating how much of a good idea it would be for me to attempt a race, knowing that I'd finish at least 10 to 20 minutes slower, given that I started in on the training program late, and probably due to the extra few pounds I've put on from two months of inactivity. Would it be more frustrating to come through the finish so much slower, or would it give me a taste for why I love road running and racing?
Then, last week, I missed my 18k LSD on Sunday - I was swamped with trying to wrap up work before my dad arrived on Monday for our five-day canoe trip in Kejimkujik Park, Nova Scotia. We've been doing a canoe trip together for the last few years. This year, we were late because I only decided about a month and a half ago that I felt strong enough for a trip into the interior.
And although I did a lot of portaging (some days averaged about 8k a day, which is a lot, when you're carrying a canoe solo and then another 30-40 pounds of gear over rugged terrain), I didn't get to run while we were in the interior (there was no time, and nowhere to run - most of Keji is dense, beautiful forest).
I also missed this Sunday's 20k LSD, as Dad was still here and we headed out to the Eastern Passage with hubby for fishcakes at Emma's and a walk along the boardwalk on Fisherman's Cove.
And as the perfect storm of excuses would have it, my hubby also reminded me we'd been invited to a wedding on October 9th.
You could say -- I've found just about all the excuses I need not to do a fall half.
But after all the highs and lows and personal struggles of the last few weeks, I'm ok with this decision. I'm actually enjoying the thought of maybe taking a break from racing for one season, and training for a winter or spring half. I've been training and racing non-stop for the last four years, even through a pretty serious operation, and I think it's ok to just lighten up and give myself a break if I miss this one.
Yet ironically, as I type this, I've just remembered that the CIBC Run for the Cure is coming up. Sure enough, it's this Sunday! I run this every year, if I can manage it, and this will be a great way to get a race in for a good cause.
So while I won't be out there with my fellow runners at the Valley Harvest Marathon on October 9th, I'll be there in spirit, remembering my half in 2009. Running by farm fields, the fall sun glinting off the cornfields, I remember being startled by the sound of cows mooing to my right. Running through the Annapolis Valley in the fall is a beautiful thing!
~ HRG
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